Federal (USA)

Lieutenant Colonel

William Stowell Tilton

Formerly with the "Independent Corps of Cadets", a Boston militia unit, he entered War service as 1st Lieutenant and Adjutant of the 22nd Massachusetts Infantry on 12 September 1861. He was appointed Major on 2 October. He was wounded at Gaines Mill on 27 June 1862 and taken prisoner, but returned to service for the Maryland Campaign. He was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel to date from 28 June 1862.

On the Campaign

His Regiment, was part of the Reserve of the Army of the Potomac on 17 September at Antietam and did not see action there.

The rest of the War

He was made Colonel of the 22nd on 17 October 1862. He was at Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, and was a brigade commander in the Fifth Corps at Gettysburg (July 1863) leading troops in th Wheatfield. He mustered out of service at expiration of his service on 17 October 1864. He was honored by Brevet to Brigadier General to date from 9 September 1864 for distinguished service during the War.

After the War

He was an original Companion of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS) and later Commander at the Soldier's Home, Togus, Maine.

References & notes

Service information from Heitman1, photograph from Uriguen2, and other details from the OR3. His gravesite is on Findagrave.

A carte de visite of him as Major of the 22nd - and likely source of photo above - is in the Charles W. Jenks Collection, at the Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston. A similar CDV was sold at auction by Cowan's in 2004.

3 US War Department, The War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (OR), 128 vols., Washington DC: US Government Printing Office, 1880-1901, various cites [AotW citation 523]